The Surprise of a LifeTime
by Shoe
Summary: 16 year old girl found dead/Nina & Eddie deal with their problems
1. Default Chapter

This story is sort of a continuation of  "The Stranger" so please read that story first before reading this one.  Thank you.

Opening Scene:  Maria Guzman, a 16-year-old Hispanic girl, is making out with a black guy in a crowded hallway of a high school.  A teacher breaks up the couple, and the two go opposite ways with their friends.  A Hispanic guy stops Maria and the two argue.  She puts her hand in his face to cut him off and leaves.  Later that day Maria is in the backseat of a car with another black guy.  An angry black girl pounds on the car window, throwing her hands in the air and screaming.  Maria gets out the car and the two girls begin to push each other.  The guy breaks them apart, and Maria walks away.  She meets up with a friend on a rooftop to smoke a cigarette.  A few minutes she gives her friend a hug and says good-bye.  When she leaves, it is dark outside.  As she takes a short cut home through a dark alley, she is struck from behind.  Everything goes black.

Scene 1:

Nina Moreno buries her face into her cool pillow, trying to hide her sensitive eyes from the sunshine that peaked beneath the window blinds.  Her whole body still ached from the industrious previous week of five cases back-to-back.  Her mind ached from the argument she had with her boyfriend, Eddie Torres, the night before.  He had came home late from his workout with JC that night, which was perfectly fine with Nina.  After all Eddie was a grown man and if he wanted to have a guy's night out, what could she do?  Then he was supposed to have a guy's night out with a couple of his friends.  The only problem was that there were no "guys" going out with Eddie that night.  It was a woman.  And only one woman.  The thing that pissed Nina off the most is that Eddie was not even going to bother to tell her the truth.  She had to find out by picking up the phone and hearing another woman's voice on the other end.

(Flashback)

_The phone rings and Nina picks answers it._

_"Hello?"  Nina asked._

_"Hello?  Who is this?" a woman asked._

_"This is Nina Moreno.  And who is this?"_

_"Nina Moreno?  Oh yeah, Eddie told me about you."_

_Nina chewed her lip in confusion._

_"Oh did he now.  And who might you be?"_

_The woman on the other end laughs a flirtatious giggle._

_"I'm sorry.  I did not even introduce myself.  I am Kathy Gordon.  A friend of Eddie's."_

_Nina took a couple slow breaths and tried to keep the hostility out of her voice._

_"So you're a friend of Eddie's, huh?  It's funny how he never mentioned you."_

_Judging by the tone of her voice, Nina could tell that the woman was surprised._

_"Really?  It is funny that Eddie never mentioned me considering we're suppose to go out tonight."_

_With those words, Nina could fell a burning sensation at the pit of her stomach.  She knew that if she didn't hang up the phone, she would end up cussing out this woman she didn't even know._

_"Listen, Kathy," Nina said as calmly as she possibly could.  "Eddie isn't here right now.  But as soon as he comes in I'll be sure to give him you message."  Nina slammed the phone down on the receiver._

_"Who the hell does Eddie think he's fooling with?"  Nina mumbled to herself.  Nina knew their relationship was not carved in stone.  But they loved and trusted each other.  So why didn't Nina trust Eddie on this particular issue?_

_"Am I overreacting?"  Nina asked the empty apartment.  She immediately made it up in her mind that the answer to that question was No.  She was supposed to be the main woman in his life and she had every right to know about the other women in Eddie's life._

_        The front door opened and Eddie walked in after the workout with JC.  Precipitation made his thin sleeveless t-shirt and baggy gym shorts cling to his hard body.  His thick hair was matted to his head with sweat.  There was something incredibly sexy to Nina about the way he looked at that moment.  But she took her mind away from his physical appearance and directed it towards the reason why she was so angry with him._

_        "Man that was one hell of a workout!"  Eddie exclaimed, in an exasperated voice.  He dropped his duffle bag along with his towels to the floor beside the door and opened the refrigerator for a bottle of water.  He took a few gulps and looked at Nina with those intense eyes that she could not resist._

_        "You should have seen you man in the gym today.  I even took JC by surprise."_

_        "Kathy called for you," Nina blurted out.  Nina waited for Eddie's face to turn white with shock.  She waited for him to make up a ton of excuses to cover up his deed.  But instead, Eddie acted as if he did not care that Nina now knew about Kathy._

_        "Oh yeah.  Kathy.  Me and her were supposed to have a little get together tonight."  Eddie pulls off his shirt and heads for the bathroom, closing the door behind him._

_        Nina stood in the middle of the living room completely numb.  She could not believe that Eddie had acted so nonchalant about her discovery of his "friend" Kathy.  A few seconds later, Nina heard the shower turn on._

_        "Who the hell does that man think he is?"  Nina said to herself.  "Oh hell no."_

_        Without hesitation, Nina opened the bathroom door to find Eddie standing there completely nude._

_        "Hey, baby, I'm kind of about to do something," he laughed motioning towards the shower.  Eddie wrapped his arms around Nina's waist and pulled her closer to his body so she could feel his hardness._

_        "Not unless you want to join me in the shower," he whispered seductively in her ear._

_        "Who the hell is Kathy Gordon?"  Nina asked angrily, ignoring his advances.  Eddie's smile disappeared as he unwrapped his arms around her waist._

_        "Well I can see someone isn't in the mood."  He steps in the shower and pulled the curtain._

_        "Well who is she?"_

_        "She's an old friend I've know for a couple of years."_

_        "Oh and out of the blue she just calls you and wants to go out?"_

_        "Basically yeah."_

_        "And you thought it was perfectly ok not to mention to Kathy that you had a girlfriend and not to mention to me that you were going out with her?"_

_        Eddie turned off the shower and steeped out.  Water glistened off his body, as he grabbed a towel hanging on the wall._

_        "Nina, you're not my mother.  I do not need you permission to go out with one of my friends."  He wrapped the towel around his bottom half, left the bathroom and went into the bedroom.  Nina followed him closely._

_        "So now I'm acting like your mother because I want to know why some other woman is calling, asking for you?"_

_        "No," Eddie responded, dropping the towel and putting on a pair of black boxers.  "I'm not saying you shouldn't be curious, but you shouldn't make it seem like I'm cheating on you or something either."_

_        Nina's eyes tinged with tears of anger._

_        "How do I know that?  For all I know you could be cheating on me with her!"_

_        Eddie stopped dead in his tracks from getting dressed.  His face-hardened.  He stared at her with more anger than she had ever seen in her life.  After what seemed like an eternity of staring at each other, Eddie finally spoke._

_        "I cannot believe you just said that, Nina," he said quietly.  Nina could tell by his voice he was genuinely hurt by her accusations._

_        "Well I'm sorry if you're so insecure about this relationship that you think I'm cheating on you, Nina, but the truth is I'm not.  I have never slept or even thought about sleeping with Kathy.  So if you would excuse me I have a get together to attend to."  And with that, Eddie finished getting dressed and leaves the apartment._

_        Nina paced the floor for a while after Eddie left.  She could not believe he was acting like this.  It was arguments like these that made Nina scared to take a pregnancy test; despite the fact, her period was late.  She did not want to bring yet another baby into an unstable relationship._

_        After hours of pacing, thinking and eating chocolate ice cream to cure her depression, Nina collapsed on the bed and fell into a deep sleep._

_(End of flashback)_

        Nina yawned deeply and forced her heavy eyelids open.  She turned her head away from the window and towards the nightstand beside her bed.  Standing neatly on the small table was a picture of her and her mother on her sixth birthday, a picture of her and Eddie shortly after they started dating, and a small digital clack that read 10:30 am. 

        "10:30!"  Nina yelled at herself.  Realizing she was about two hours late for work, she quickly jumped out of bed and went straight to the shower.  

        Thirty minutes later Nina walked into the pack fourth precinct.  Uniformed officers were bringing in a few guys who had attempted a bank robbery.  One woman was yelling at another officer that her husband had hit her.  Right next to her, were two men arguing to another officer about a car accident.  There was so much noise and confusion, that Nina thought her head was swelling.  She dodges by the clumps of people standing around the police station until she reaches her desk.  In one hand, Nina carried a cup of coffee.  In the other hand, she carried a small crumbled paper bag.

        Two police officers slammed an out of control black man on her desk, knocking her belongings to the floor.

        "Damn, watch it!"  Nina yelled

        The man in custody struggle to get away but the two officers pent him down on the desk.

        "Get the hell off of me!" he yelled.  "I didn't do anything!"

        "You have the right to remain silent.  Now shut your mouth!"  One of the officers exclaimed.

        "But I'm innocent, I keep telling ya'll that!"

        The other officer smirks.  "Yeah you're so innocent that you tried to grab my partner's gun, huh?"  The two officers handcuff the man and pull him off Nina's desk.

        Looking at Nina, the man said  "Come on, I'm innocent.  Help a brother out."

        "Shut up!"  The two officers yelled.  They begin to walk him to the holding cell.

        Nina signed, pushing her hair off her face.  She bent down to pick up her picture frames and files that were knocked to the ground and sits at her desk.  Nina's eyes searched to crowded station for Eddie, but his desk was empty, along with his partner's.  Making sure no one else was checking her out, she reluctantly unwrapped the crumbled paper bag and took out the square white box, which contained the store brought pregnancy test.

        "Detective Moreno?"  The secretary asked.

        Nina jumped in surprise and quickly stuffed the test in her drawer.

        "Yes?"

        "Lieutenant Cooper said she wanted to see you as soon as you got in."

        Nina rolled her eyes.  "She's probably just going to spit fire at me for being late again.  Thanks."

        As the secretary walks away, Nina goes to Cooper's office.  As she opens the door, Cooper is sitting at her desk on the phone.

        "Honey, I know you want to go to the party… but baby it's on a school night."  Cooper motions for Nina to have a seat.

        "Saying you hate me is not going to change my mind, Megan…Look we'll talk about it when I get home…okay?  Bye."  Cooper hangs up the phone.

        Nina gripped the arms of the chair preparing herself for Cooper's rants.

        "Well Detective, I'm so glad you cleared your schedule for your job this morning," Cooper said sarcastically.

        "I'm sorry, Lieutenant."

        Cooper takes a sip of coffee.  "Save your apologies Moreno and don't let it happen again.  This is not high school where you can be late whenever you want.

        "It won't happen again."

        "Glad to hear it.  Now while you were sleeping late or doing whatever, a couple of our uniforms found a 16-year-old girl's body on a 131st street.  Torres and Williams are already on their way there."

        "So am I working this case with the two of them?"  Nina asked.

        "Yeah, and I need you to be focused on this one, Moreno.  That means no fighting with Torres, no coming in late…"

        Nina interrupted her angrily  "Haven't I always been focused on my cases?"

        "Yeah you have until recently.  Which is something I wanted to ask you about.  Is everything okay?"

        Nina paused, uncertain if she should tell Cooper about her problems with Eddie and her possible pregnancy.

        "Everything is fine," Nina lied.  She stood up and headed towards the door.

        "If you ever need to talk, Moreno, you know I'm always here," Cooper called after her.

        Nina looked back and smiled at Cooper before shutting the door.

Scene 2:  Eddie and JC are in JC's car driving to the crime scene.

        "So what's up with you and your lady?"  JC asked, controlling the steering wheel with one hand and turning up the radio with the other.

        "Nothing is up.  She's been acting weird around me lately."

        JC bent his head back and laughed.  "Well you know how women get around that time of the month."

        Eddie chuckled at his friend.  " Oh yeah I definitely know how they get when it's that time of the month.  With Nina, it is never a pretty sight.  I mean take this one time a couple weeks ago…"

        "So what happened that night?  You got some?"

        "No.  And that's how it's been for weeks now.  No kind of love whatsoever.  And the thing about it is I had the whole night planned so perfectly."

        JC laughed.  "Yeah I bet you did.  The multicolored condoms, the sex lotion and all."

        "Don't hate the player, hate the game."

        The two guys burst in laughter.

        "But anyway," Eddie continues "She came over to my place from her class at the city college.  I had the Isley Brothers playing on the stereo, the dinner made, the lights dim, and the perfect love making satin sheets on the bed…I am anxious as a mother because I have not had sex in weeks…and what does Nina do?  She gives me a peck on the cheek and says she's tired and goes to bed."

        JC tried to keep a straight face but failed.  His face crumbled with amusement at Eddie's misfortune.

        "Maybe you need a new approach, papa.  That high school thing must not be working anymore."

        Eddie signed, rubbing his hands on his exhausted face.  "I guess not although it's worked on every woman I've been with before.  Oh and you would not believe what happened last night.  Nina accused me of cheating on her."

        "What!  Are you joking?"   JC exclaimed in surprise.

        "I wish I was joking, but I'm not.  This girl I used to date named Kathy, in high school came into town a few days ago and asked if I wanted to have a little get together with her.  I forgot to mention it to Nina so when Kathy called…"

        "Oh I got to stop you right there, man.  You broke the number one rule in dating.   Never have old girlfriends or even a plain girl who is just a friend call your house without telling your lady ahead of time."

        "Well now I know that.  But why would I take relationship advice from someone who can't get a date?"

        JC laughs at Eddie's comment.  "Oh so now you're trying to diss, huh?"

        The two guys cannot help but to laugh.

        "Yo, yo here's our scene, man,"

        JC pulled the car to the crime scene.  There is a bunch of bystanders and a uniformed officer on the sidewalk.  JC and Eddie approached the officer and show their badges.

        "I'm Detective Torres and this is my partner Detective Williams from the fourth squad."

        "What happened here?"  JC asked

        "The victim is 16 year old, Maria Guzman.  A homeless man looking for food down that alley found her.  Looks like blunt trauma to the head," the officer explained.

        "I'm going to go check the alley out," Eddie said.

        "Alright man," JC said.  The two guys give each other a pound before Eddie leaves.

        "How long have she been here?"  JC asked.

        "I don't know.  Judging by the bluish tint of her skin probably since last night after she left an Adrienne Santiago's house."

        JC bent down, put on a pair of latex gloves and pulled off the white plastic sheet that uncovered Maria's head.  "Who is Adrienne Santiago and have we questioned her?"

        "She's the victim's best friend and no we haven't questioned her yet.  School is still in session."

        JC carefully examined Maria's battered face and the back of her head.  "Damn.  Some one did a job on her."

        "Hey look what I found in the dumpster," Eddie said with a small black purse in his hand.

        JC takes the purse from Eddie and opens it.

        "This is the victim's purse.  Nothing much in here but a five-dollar bill, a pack of cigarettes and two pictures."

        Eddie looks over JC's shoulder at the first picture.  Maria and an older lady were in a swimming pool laughing.  The other picture was Maria sitting on the lap of a younger guy.

        "Maybe that's her mother and that one is her boyfriend," Eddie pointed out

        "Yeah probably," the officer agreed.  "The only probably is we have know ideal where her mother is and it doesn't look like she has any other family."

        Eddie signs.  "It's a shame."

        Nina pulls up to the scene and walks up to JC and Eddie

        "What happened here?"

        "16 year old girl killed last night.  Blunt trauma to the back of the head," JC explained

        "Well if she was hit from behind, why is she laying on her back?"  Nina asked.

        "Possible sexual assault.  We won't know for sure until the autopsy," the officer said.

        "Why don't we do this.  Moreno, see if there are any witnesses here.  Eddie and I will try to contact the parent."

        "Alright."

        "JC wait in the car for me.  I'll catch up."  Eddie said.  JC walks away.

        "Everything alright?"  Eddie asked Nina.

        Nina rolled her eyes and walked away.  "Why does everyone keep asking that?"

        Eddie follows her.  "Because you've been acting strange around me lately.  I mean you barely let me touch you anymore!"

        "Look it's not you.  I've just have a lot of things on my mind right now."

        "Then talk to me about it.  I mean damn Nina, isn't that what people do in relationships?  They talk about things that are bothering them."

        "There's nothing to talk about, Eddie.  Nothing is wrong with me.  Just because I don't want to give it up every time you're in the mood doesn't mean something is wrong with me," Nina said hastily.

        Eddie laughed in frustration.  "This isn't about sex and you know it."

        JC blows the horn

        "You know Nina, if you ever want to call this whole thing off, let me know."

        Nina was surprised at Eddie's comment.  "What?"

         Eddie turned and walked away without answering Nina.

Scene 3:  Eddie and JC wait in the car outside of Maria Guzman's Bronx apartment.  JC glances at his watch.

        "Damn, it's almost six o'clock and the mother still isn't home.  That's probably why her child is dead now."

        Eddie threw JC a hard look

        "That's a real nice comment, JC," he said sarcastically.

        "Come on, Eddie you know it's the truth…  That is why there are 13-year-old girls walking around pregnant.  10 year olds on the corner selling crack…."

        "Wait, wait I think this is her," Eddie points to a woman a little ways down the street.  The older woman had just gotten out of a guys car.  She wore a tight leather mini skirt and halter-top.  She walks towards the apartment building.

        "Are you sure that's her?"  JC asked.

        Eddie pulled out the picture he found in Maria's purse.

        "Yeah that's her.  Come on, man."

        JC and Eddie got out of the car and followed Maria's mother into the building.

        "Ms. Guzman, may we have a word with you?"  Eddie asks showing his badge.

        Maria's mother quickly turns around with a bewildered look on her face.  "What the hell do you want?"

        "I'm Detective Torres and this is my partner Detective Williams from the fourth precinct…."

        "Oh no…look officers I can't afford to go to jail again…  I-I got a daughter and…"

        "Look we're not here to bust you on prostitution.  We just have to talk to you about your daughter," JC explained.

        Ms. Guzman gasps.  "Maria?  Is-Is she all right?  What's wrong with her?"

        Eddie bit his lip not looking forward to telling Maria's mother the bad news.  "Ms. Guzman we found a body this morning…we think it might be Maria's."

        Ms. Guzman's face slowly trembles as her eyes fill with tears.  She shakes her head with disbelief.

        "No, not my baby."

        JC looked down and signed.  "Ma'am we're sorry, but we need you to identify the body…"

        "No!  Maria is not dead.  Do you hear me?  You have her confuse with someone else!"

        "Ms. Guzman we know this is hard but…"

        "No!  Maria is not dead!"  Ms. Guzman violently swings towards the two detectives.  Eddie grabs her hands and wraps his arms around her.  She sobs uncontrollably into his chest.

Scene 4:  Cooper's office

        "Alright Detectives tell me what we have on this case so far."

        "The autopsy came back in and confirmed that she was hit in the back of the head multiple times with a blunt object like a rock, baseball bat or something of that nature.  Also, she had intercourse shortly before she was killed," Eddie confirmed

.

        Cooper raises her eyebrows.  "Really?  Well that could be our lead.  Maybe the boyfriend got mad at her for whatever reason and took a swing at her.  Are there any pictures?"

        "Yeah autopsy pictures and a few from the crime scent."  JC hands the pictures to Cooper.

        Cooper stares at the pictures of Maria's lifeless body.  "Poor, poor child."  Looking at her watch, she puts the pictures in the envelope and hands them back to JC.  "Look it's getting late.  First thing in the morning, I want the two of you and Moreno to interview her mother again and see if you can get any more information there.  Also, check out the school she went to.  Find out who her friends were, who her boyfriend was and who might have wanted to do something like this to her.  You're free to go home."

        JC and Eddie both walk towards the door.

        "Torres, let me have a word with you."

        "Hey man I'll catch you later," JC said.  They give each other a pound and JC walks out the door.  Eddie walks back to Cooper's desk and sits down.

        "Torres, I'm very worried about Moreno.  She hasn't been herself lately."

        "Yeah, I know.  I think she is just stressed out from the caseload recently."

        "Well that's the most important characteristic of this job.  You can't crack under pressure."

        "I'll talk to her."

        "You need to do a lot more then talk to her, Torres.  I love Nina to death, but I cannot afford a slacking detective at this precinct.  I have to put up with enough crap as it is."

        "She'll be fine.  Like I said it's just stress but she will make a come back.

        "For her sake I hope so," Cooper said.

Scene 4:  Nina sits on her bathroom toilet with the pregnancy test in her hand, waiting for the applicant to change colors.

        "Come on, hurry up and turn a damn color," Nina said to the test.  "I need to know it I'm pregnant or not."  Nina looks at the small clock she put by the sink.  Five minutes to go.  Nina impatiently blows her breath.  The front door opens.

        "Baby, I'm home!"  Eddie calls from the living room.

        "Just a minute.  I'm in the bathroom!"

        Nina's eyes frantically search for a place in the bathroom to hide the pregnancy test.  She places it in the medicine cabinet.  Then she opens the bathroom door to see Eddie standing in the living room with a dozen red roses.  Nina could not help but smile.  He looked so incredibly cute with his ivory skin and jet-black curly hair.  His eyes looked hopeful at her as if he was ready to work everything out.

        "These are to the most beautiful woman in the world."  He hands the roses to her and affectionately places a kiss on her lips.

        "Thank you," Nina responded after the kiss ended.

        Before Nina could get out another word, Eddie kisses her again, but with more intensity.  With her eyes closed, Nina signed with bliss.  She missed tasting Eddie's kisses.  She missed feeling his arms around her as if she was the only woman in the world.  Her breath quickened with need as she felt Eddie's hands make their way underneath her sweater.  His thin fingers felt like silk on her warm skin as both of his hands made their way to unhook her bra.  Within seconds, her bra and sweater laid in piles on the living room floor

"Baby it has been to long," Eddie said softly.  His voice was barely a whisper.

Nina agreed.  It seemed like it had been ages since Eddie touched her in an intimate way.  Her whole body arched for Eddie to make love to her.  But she needed to talk to him about their problems, and where this relationship was going.  She needed to tell him that there was a possibility she was carrying his child.

Nina forced her lips off Eddie's.  "Eddie we need to talk."

"Mmmhmm can we talk later?" he mumbled.

Nina tried to protest but could not resist the fact that she needed him.  Eddie gently pushed Nina back onto the living room sofa.  He led a trail of kisses from her neck to her naked breast.  He broke apart only to pull off his flannel shirt, revealing his hard chest.  Nina felt his fingers beginning to unbutton her pants.

"Eddie we need to talk," Nina repeated louder.

He ignored her as he continued to unbutton her pants.

"Eddie I'm serious!"

        Judging by the tone of her voice, Eddie stopped and signed in disappointment.

        "Didn't you hear me the first and second time I said I wanted to talk?  Or was you more interested in getting you some tonight?"

        "Oh here we go again," Eddie thought.  He laughed bitterly as he pulled back on his shirt.

        "I'm sorry I wanted a little affection tonight.  Especially since you've been treating me like a disease the past couple weeks."

        Nina felt as if she was going to explode.  "I have not been treating you like a disease!  Is sex all you think about in this relationship?  How many times I'm going to give it to you?"

        Eddie bitted his lips the way he always did when he was mad.

        "You know Nina, I'm sick of you treating me like so cold sex fiend.  I do not just want sex from you.  I want _you.  _I want Nina Moreno.  And I though I did have you but I guess I was wrong.  I don't know where I'm going with you."

        "You don't know where you're going with me?  What the hell is that suppose to mean?"

        Eddie opens his mouth but quickly closes it.  After a few moments, he started to speak. 

"Listen it's obvious for whatever reason that you're not happy with me anymore.  And I'm not sure if I'm happy with you, so maybe we should just end it."

        Nina opens her mouth in shock.  Tears of pain fill her eyes as the love of her life breaks her hearts.  She blinks the tears away.

        "Fine.  It's over."

        Without saying a word, Eddie grabs his jacket and leaves.  Nina slowly puts back on her sweater and pants.  Her body that was warm from Eddie's body a few minutes ago was now cold.   Now that she was alone she let the tears that she had held back fall.  Placing her head in her lap, she cried all the tears she thought she had.

The pregnancy test in the medicine cabinet popped into Nina's mind.  Nina quickly made her way to the bathroom hoping the pregnancy test was negative.  What good what a baby do if she and Eddie were no longer together?

        Nina opens the cabinet and carefully picks up the test.  

        "God, please don't let me pregnant.  Please."

        As Nina looks at the applicant, as it began to turn a dark shade of blue.  Nina grabbed the box and skimmed the directions to see what dark blue meant.

        _Red means negative, dark blue means positive._

She was pregnant.

To Be Continued…


	2. 2nd Chapter

Almost two hours after finding out she was pregnant, Nina still couldn't believe it. She sat there on the toilet seat staring intensely at the applicant, staring at the dark blue color that confirmed her biggest fear. She was pregnant. She was an unmarried pregnant woman. Nina thought this could never happen to her after the first time she got pregnant back when she was sixteen. She thought she was a much more mature and smarter woman. She was wrong.  
  
"These things are never a 100% effective," she told herself in denial. She threw the test in the trash and ran to the phone to call her mother. Before dialing the number, Nina thought about what her mom might have said. 'I told you so' would probably be the first thing that came out of her mouth. 'Why didn't you use protection?' and 'Didn't you learn your lesson?' would probably follow.  
  
"God knows I don't want to hear that crap right now," Nina mumbled to herself. But she knew at a time like this, she needed her mother's advice. Nina swallowed her pride and punched in her mom's number.  
  
"Hello?" Ms. Moreno answered the phone.  
  
"Ma-Mami, it-it's me." Nina stuttered.  
  
"What's wrong, Nina?"  
  
Nina took a deep breath.  
  
"Nothing's wrong. Why does something have to be wrong?"  
  
"Because I know my daughter. Your voice tells me there's something wrong."  
  
"Mami, I'm pregnant."  
  
There was one full minute of silence. A silence that was so mute Nina thought her mother might have dropped the phone in shock.  
  
"Mami, Are you still there?"  
  
"Nina, how could you let this happen again?"  
  
Nina rolled her eyes and signed heavily.  
  
"Mami, I don't need the lecture right now. I need you to help me."  
  
More silence.  
  
"You're right, baby. I'm sorry. Now are you positively sure you're pregnant?"  
  
Nina exhaled in relief. "Well I only took one test and it came back positive," Nina said.  
  
"Home bought test can be wrong. I'm going to bring a couple more tests over tonight and tomorrow you should go to the doctor to be on the safe side."  
  
"I haven't told Eddie yet."  
  
"So Eddie is the father, huh? Why haven't you told him?"  
  
Nina picked up a picture of her and Eddie that was taken at Natalie's a year ago. They looked so happy as they held each other. Back then Nina thought they would always be together."  
  
"We broke up. And I don't want him coming back to me just because I'm pregnant."  
  
"Nina, Eddie still has a right to know. It is his baby too. I don't know why you two broke up, but I do know that Eddie loves you, and if he did come back it wouldn't be because you're pregnant."  
  
Nina blinked away a few tears as she listened to her mom describe Eddie. She knew deep in her heart that she still loved him and probably always would. But she was too hurt.  
  
"I will tell him eventually. First I definitely want to make sure I'm pregnant." Nina knew that was easier said then done.  
  
After about an hour of talking, Ms. Moreno came to Nina's apartment with seven different pregnancy tests. Each one was positive. Nina was definitely pregnant.  
  
The next morning..  
  
JC and Eddie are in the hallways of Booker T. Washington High School. Hundreds of kids pushed pass the two detectives, as they made their way to their classrooms and lockers. The tardy bell rings and the students in the hallways slowly begin to disappear.  
  
"I wonder who we should talk to first about Maria." Eddie asked.  
  
"Probably the principal. Come on, man," JC said. The two detectives walked down the hallway to the head principal's office.  
  
"So, Ed my man, what's up with the long face?" JC asked.  
  
"Nothing man. I just didn't get much sleep last night."  
  
A devious smile slowly to form on JC's face.  
  
"I didn't get much sleep either," JC hinted.  
  
"Oh really? What did you do last night to lose sleep? Jerk off to your invisible girlfriend?"  
  
JC pretended to be hurt by Eddie's comment.  
  
"Now that's just harsh, Ed. I still have game you know. You married men wouldn't know anything about that."  
  
Eddie laughed at what JC insinuated. "I am hardly married to Nina."  
  
"Since when?"  
  
"Since last night. We broke up."  
  
JC's smile disappeared. "Sorry man."  
  
Eddie signed. "Yeah well I'm not. She has changed so much. Maybe it was never meant to be. But on the bright side, I am single again."  
  
JC and Eddie stopped in front of a door labeled Head Principal Michael Tomson. JC lightly knocked on the door. A older, plumped secretary answered.  
  
"Principal Tomson is really busy," she uttered before trying to shut the door in their faces. Eddie stuck out his hand to keep the door from closing.  
  
"I'm Detective Torres and this is Detective Williams. We need to have a word with the principal."  
  
The secretary rolled her eyes.  
  
"Let me see if he's available," she frowned, before shutting the door. Within seconds, she opened the door again.  
  
"Mr. Tomson will see the two of you briefly. Follow me."  
  
The secretary led JC and Eddie past her small desk and to another door. She knocked on the door. "Mr. Tomson, these two detectives are here to see you."  
  
"Bring them in," a voice replied from inside the office. The secretary opened the door and went inside with JC and Eddie following her.  
  
"Here they are, Mr. Tomson. I'm sorry I didn't bring them in earlier. I thought they were messengers," she sneered.  
  
"What's this bitch's problem?" JC remarked under his breath.  
  
"Thank you, Ms. Thorn. That will be all." The secretary took one last look at JC and Eddie before leaving the office.  
  
"Ms. Thorn, huh? I can see why she's not married," JC replied.  
  
"JC!" Eddie scolded.  
  
The principal laughed. "Ms. Thorn gives everyone a hard time," He got up from his desk and went to the coffee pot. "Detectives have a seat a seat and tell me what I can help you with."  
  
JC and Eddie sat down.  
  
"Mr. Tomson, are you aware that one of the student's that attend school here was killed two days ago?" JC questioned.  
  
Principal Tomson sat back down. "Yes I am aware. Maria Guzman. It's a tragedy."  
  
JC continued, "Well Maria was murdered, we think, by someone she knew."  
  
"We were hoping you could tell us anyone in school that may have had a problem with her." Eddie finished.  
  
Principal Tomson took a sip of his coffee and fiddled with his tie.  
  
"Yes. Maria had many enemies with both male and female. According to a lot of the students here, Ms. Guzman was the school's tramp," he informed putting school's tramp into quotations with his fingers.  
  
"Well is there anyone in particular you could think of that may have wanted to hurt her?" JC asked.  
  
The principal pressed his lips together and shook his head.  
  
"No. No one in particular. Then again, I would not really know. I don't exactly talk to those hood rats out there."  
  
JC and Eddie both exchanged surprised looks. Principal Tomson took another sip of his coffee.  
  
"Now that I think about it, Maria did have a confrontation with some Hispanic did a while back, named Aldrin Herendaz."  
  
Eddie took quick notes.  
  
"You wouldn't have any attendance records for Maria would you?"  
  
"As a matter of fact I do." Principal Tomson walks to a file cabinet and pulls out a brown folder. "Here you go." He hands the folder to Eddie.  
  
Eddie skims the records with his eyes for a few minutes.  
  
"Mr. Tomson, are you aware Maria was absent a total of 36 days this school year?" Eddie implored.  
  
The principal shrugged. "A lot of kids are absent in this school."  
  
"Well do you notify the parents when they don't show up?" JC requested a little angrily.  
  
The principal smiled. "No Detective, because it's not my responsibility to keep these kids in school. If they want to deal drugs or get pregnant instead of getting an education, then that's their business," The principal stood up.  
  
"Detectives, will there be anything else?"  
  
JC and Eddie stood up.  
  
"No I think that's about it." Eddie responded.  
  
The principal shakes Eddie's hand. When the principal extends his hand to JC, he looks down on it and walks out the office, without returning the handshake.  
  
"Tell me this, Eddie. How is that guy the principal of this school? It's obvious he doesn't give a damn about the kids that go here."  
  
Eddie signed. "In the Bronx, caring is about the student isn't a requirement."  
  
Scene 2  
  
JC and Eddie return to the Fourth Precinct. JC goes back to his desk and Eddie goes to the coffee pot. As Eddie begins to pour some coffee in a cup, he notices Nina walking into the door. The first thing she did was head to the coffee pot. Their eyes link to each other. Eddie tears his eyes away from her and begins to pour cream into his coffee. Nina lowers her eyes nervously as she stands by Eddie's side and reaches over him to grab a cup.  
  
"Good morning," Eddie said  
  
"Good morning," Nina responded, not looking at him.  
  
Eddie picks up the coffee pot and offers to pour Nina a cup. Thinking twice about the baby, Nina pulls her cup away.  
  
"No, no thank you. I probably shouldn't drink that much coffee anymore. You know it might upset my stomach," Nina lied.  
  
Eddie looked strangely at her because she had never refused coffee before.  
  
"Oh, okay," he lowered the coffee pot.  
  
"Listen," they both said at the same time. They both nervously laughed.  
  
"You go first, Eddie."  
  
Eddie rubs his hand through his curly, black hair.  
  
"I just wanted to say that even though we're not together anymore, I hope we can still be friends. Maybe this was the best thing for us, you know, to be apart from each other."  
  
Nina swallowed the lump in her throat.  
  
"Yeah, I guess you're right."  
  
Eddie smiled at Nina and rubbed the side her arm in a friendly way.  
  
"Good. I'm glad we can move on from this. Now what did you want to tell me, Nina?"  
  
Nina paused. Eddie practically had gotten over her already. How could she tell him she was pregnant with his child?  
  
"I was just going to say the same thing, Eddie. I will always love you as a friend. I hope you can find a woman that you're truly happy with."  
  
Eddie hugged Nina in a friendly way, before returning to his desk. Nina walked back to her desk, angry with herself for not telling Eddie the truth.  
  
As Nina sat back down, she fiddled with her hair and thought about how she should tell Eddie. Telling him face to face would be too hard. Nina got out a pen and paper and started to write a letter.  
  
Dear Eddie,  
  
I know we are not seeing each other anymore, but there is something you should know..  
  
"Excuse me are you a Detective?" a female voice asked.  
  
Nina looked up. "Yes I am. May I help you?"  
  
The small teenaged girl nervously licked her lips and pushed back her curly hair. "Yes. My-My name is Adrienne Santiago. My friend Maria Guzman was killed a couple days ago."  
  
"Oh yes. Please sit down," Nina motions for Adrienne to sit down.  
  
The young girl was dressed in a large flannel shirt and blue jeans. Her curly locks laid like a frenzy pile on the top her head.  
  
"I'm sorry about what happened to your friend. Do you have anymore information about who might have killed her?"  
  
Adrienne nervously licked her lips. "Yes. I know exactly who killed her."  
  
Nina grabbed a notepad and a pen. "Who? Who was it Adrienne? If you're scared, we can offer you police protection."  
  
Adrienne shook her head. "No. I don't need police protection, because I'm the one who did it. I killed Maria."  
  
To Be Continued..  
  
Please, please review guys. If I get enough reviews, I will continue to write more. Thank you 


	3. 3rd chapter

Sorry you guys for the wait. I have just been so tired and busy with school, work, etc. I writing this next chapter when I am dead tired, but I thought I owed it to all the people who reviewed. So please keep up the reviews. Thank You.  
  
Chapter 3:  
  
Nina almost bite her tongue as she heard Adrienne's confession. "Adrienne, you're confessing to killing Maria?"  
  
The young girl nervously licked her lips and looked at the ground. "Ye- Yes, I killed Maria. I killed her after she left my house." Adrienne's hazel eyes began to fill with tears.  
  
Nina sat back in her chair in disbelief. "Why would you kill your best friend?"  
  
Adrienne sad eyes turned to anger as she focused them on Nina. "Because Maria was such a bitch! She was a slut, a liar…She slept with my boyfriend." Adrienne pushed back her curly locks and continued. "I-I was so angry with her that I followed her home…. and I-I hit her."  
  
"What did you hit Maria with, Adrienne?" Nina questioned.  
  
Adrienne bit her lip in confusion and paused for a moment. "I-I don't remember. It was so dark outside, and I was so angry…. I just hit her, okay?"  
  
Nina tried to stare Adrienne down. She tried to search for the truth in Adrienne's eyes. But every time Nina looked at Adrienne she would quickly direct her eyes to the ground. Almost as if she was afraid of what Nina might have found.  
  
"Adrienne, you're hiding something. Is someone putting you up to this?"  
  
Adrienne stood up. "No you stupid bitch!" She exploded. Several people in the precinct looked at Nina and Adrienne. "I killed Maria. Are you freakin' stupid or something? I killed her…I hit her in the alley. She was a stupid slut and she deserved it! Don't you understand that?" Her face was bright red.  
  
"Alright, alright Adrienne sit down." Nina hissed. Adrienne reluctantly sat back in her seat.  
  
"Aren't you going to arrest me?"  
  
"I hope not."  
  
"Why? I just confessed to a murder."  
  
"I don't believe you, Adrienne. I don't believe you had anything to do with it. You're covering for someone."  
  
Adrienne began to cry in frustration. "What do I have to do to prove that I killed Maria? I keep telling you that I did it," Adrienne burst into tears.  
  
Nina stood up from her desk and began to walk to Cooper's office. "Adrienne, I know you didn't do it and I'm going to prove that you didn't do it."  
  
Scene 2: Interrogation Room  
  
Adrienne sat at a long rectangular table with her lawyer in the middle of the almost vacant room. Eddie paced the floor as he always did during an interrogation.  
  
"Adrienne, how old are you?" Eddie asked.  
  
"Six teen."  
  
Eddie rolled up the sleeves of his thick black sweater and continued to pace the floor.  
  
"What do you want to be when you grown up?"  
  
Adrienne's lawyer looked at Eddie with annoyance. "Detective, what does this have to do with the crime my client committed?"  
  
Eddie stopped in his tracks and looked at the elder male lawyer. "This is an interrogation. And your client needs to answer all my questions."  
  
The lawyer looked at Adrienne and nodded his head. Eddie finally sat down in front of Adrienne. "Come on, Adrienne. Tell me what you want to be when you grow up."  
  
Adrienne signed. "I guess a lawyer."  
  
"A lawyer? Really?"  
  
"Yeah. A lawyer."  
  
"Why would you want to throw that away for whoever you're covering for? Because you know you can't become a lawyer in jail."  
  
Tears began to form in the corner of her eyes. "I'm not covering for anyone. I killed Maria."  
  
Eddie ran his fingers through his hair. He felt like he wanted to pull it out by the handfuls in aggravation.  
  
"Alright Adrienne. You killed Maria. Tell me what happened the night you killed her."  
  
"I already told the other detective," she retorted.  
  
"Detective Torres, Ms. Santiago already gave a statement. This is really a waste of time. Can we please get on with this?" The lawyer added.  
  
"Well I want her a statement again."  
  
"Detective-" the lawyer began.  
  
"Alright, I'll tell you what happened," Adrienne interrupted.  
  
"Earlier that day in school, I had found out from a couple people that Maria had sex with my boyfriend. At first, I didn't believe it because she was supposed to be my best friend. But I overheard her talking about it in the hallways. I was so angry with her. So anyway, she came over that night for a cigarette. When she got there, I told her to tell me the truth on whether or not she slept with my man. She lied about it. So, when she left, I followed her through the alley that she takes home, and I started hitting her from behind. I hit her with one of my dad's weights." Adrienne licked her lips as she finished.  
  
Eddie felt like he wanted to shake the truth out of the young girl. But he stood up and walked to the room behind the glass where Nina, Cooper, and JC were listening.  
  
"This is a damn waste of time," Eddie angrily muttered.  
  
"Lieu, I don't buy what she is saying," Nina said. "She is covering for someone. When she talked to me she didn't even know what weapon she used to kill Maria."  
  
"Yeah, her story does seem like it was quickly put together," JC added.  
  
"There's really nothing we can do Detectives. She confessed to killing Maria, and whether we believe her story or not, we have to arrest her," Cooper folded her arms across her chest as she looked at Adrienne through the glass. "Maybe she's covering for the boyfriend. He could have gotten angry with Maria for telling the other kids in school and killed her when she was walking home."  
  
"JC and I could go interview the boyfriend," Eddie volunteered.  
  
"No actually I want you and Moreno to get a warrant and search Adrienne's home. JC is going to question the boyfriend with a new uniform officer."  
  
"Why me?" JC questioned.  
  
"He said he knew you from a long time ago. Anyway, people lets wrap up this case as quickly as possible."  
  
JC, Eddie and Nina left Cooper's office. As they were walking down the steps to their desks, JC recognized an old friend of his.  
  
"Martin?" JC called from the top of the steps.  
  
The young officer in uniform turned around to face JC.  
  
"JC! Man, what's up?"  
  
JC quickly jogged down the stairs and greeted Martin. They gave each other a hug, laughing.  
  
"What are you doing here, man?" JC asked his old friend.  
  
Martin raises one eyebrow. "What you're not happy to see your high school buddy?"  
  
JC laughed. "No it's not that man. I'm just surprised to see you. I never imagined you would become a cop."  
  
"Yeah. To tell you the truth I'm surprised I'm a cop. But things just happened."  
  
JC and Martin walked toward JC's desk.  
  
"Eddie this is officer Martin Fredrick. Martin this is my partner Eddie Torres," JC introduced the two men.  
  
Eddie greeted Martin with a hello and shake Martin's hand.  
  
"Maybe we could all do something together tonight," Martin suggested. "You guys ever been to this club called the Hot Room?"  
  
"The Hot Room? Where all those barely dressed ladies hang out at?" Eddie asked.  
  
"Yeah. It is the perfect club for a guy. Those girls can show you a good time," Martin said.  
  
"I thought you had gotten married?" JC asked, laughing at his old friend.  
  
"That doesn't stop me for looking," Martin laughed back.  
  
JC quickly agreed to go to the club with Martin. Eddie hesitated.  
  
"Come on, Eddie. It's not like your still with Nina," JC whispered.  
  
Eddie thought about that. JC was right. Why not have good times with the fellas for a change?  
  
"I'm sure those hot women can help you quickly forget about Nina," JC added.  
  
Another moment of hesitation. "Alright man. I'll go with you two to the Hot Room tonight." Eddie gave in.  
  
JC and Martin laughed and began walking towards the exit.  
  
"It's going to be great working with you JC, man. Cooper told me you and I were questioning the boyfriend of a girl who killed her friend a couple days ago."  
  
"Yeah come on man let's get started," JC told Martin. JC gave Eddie a pound and left with Martin.  
  
  
  
Scene 3:  
  
Eddie and Nina knocked on Adrienne's door. The mother answers it.  
  
"Yes?" The older woman asked.  
  
"I'm Detective Torres and this is Detective Moreno. We have a warrant to search you're home."  
  
"You're not going to find anything," the woman said stiffly.  
  
"We'll be the judge of that," Nina said.  
  
The woman opened the door so that Nina and Eddie could walk in.  
  
"You check the bedroom and I'll check the living room," Eddie suggested. Nina nodded her head in agreement, as she made her way to Adrienne's room.  
  
"Are you aware you're daughter confessed to killing Maria Guzman?" Eddie asked as put on a pair of latex gloves and looked under the couch cushions.  
  
Adrienne's mother folded her arms and signed. "Yes I am."  
  
Eddie looked at the mother. "You don't sound like you're so surprised."  
  
"Adrienne was always so sensitive. She sometimes reacts before she thinks."  
  
Eddie began searching in the bookcase. He found a plastic bag with money in it behind a stack of books.  
  
"What is this?" Eddie asked holding up the plastic bag.  
  
Ms. Santiago mouth fell open in shock. "That's just a little money I put away in case of a rainy day," she nervously said. Eddie could tell she was lying.  
  
Eddie rolled the plastic bag up and stuffed it in an evidence folder. He made his way to Adrienne's room where Nina was searching through Adrienne's clothes.  
  
"You find anything?"  
  
"Oh yeah. Try a couple bags of crack. Looks like Adrienne had a little drug trade going on," Nina concluded.  
  
"Yeah I found a whole load of money in the living room," Eddie said.  
  
Nina signed as she pushed pass the clothes in Adrienne's closet. She found nothing.  
  
"Listen Nina we need to talk,"  
  
Nina signed again as she opened one of Adrienne's drawers. "This is not the time or the place, Eddie."  
  
Eddie looked down. "I feel bad the way we left things."  
  
"Eddie, please. I really don't want to talk about this."  
  
Eddie said nothing as he bent down and looked under Adrienne's bed.  
  
Nina came across some of stained underwear.  
  
"Well it looks like Adrienne had sex with someone." Nina told Eddie as she held up the underwear. She stuffed the underwear in and evidence folder. Eddie stood up. Eddie and Nina walked out of Adrienne's room.  
  
"What-What did you find?" The mother tensely asked.  
  
"You'll find out soon enough, Ms. Santiago," Eddie said as they both left the house.  
  
Scene 4: JC and Martin drove down the street looking for Paco Rodriguez, Adrienne's boyfriend. They had a tip that Paco hanged out on the streets a lot.  
  
"Yo, JC man that's him. That is Paco Rodriquez," Martin pointed out.  
  
"Are you sure?" JC questioned as he slowed down the car.  
  
"Yeah. I busted him on drug possession a few times," Martin said.  
  
JC stopped the car on the side of the street. Paco was hanging out with a couple of guys in front of a convenience store.  
  
"Paco, man we need a word with you," Martin approached Paco without showing his badge.  
  
"Well, well if it isn't Officer Fredrick," Paco smirked.  
  
"Shut up!" Martin said.  
  
JC looked at Martin with a surprised look. "I'm Detective Williams and this is Officer Fredrick. Do you know a Adrienne Santiago?"  
  
"Yeah I know her," Paco answered.  
  
"Are you aware that she was arrested for the murder of Maria Guzman?"  
  
Paco looked at Martin. "What a shame," Paco commented.  
  
Martin seemed to be getting angry with Paco for some reason. "Are you trying to get smart with us?" Martin roughly grabbed Paco by the shirt and pushed him into the wall.  
  
"Hey come on, Martin lets play this by the book!" JC yelled pulling at Martin. Martin released Paco.  
  
"Where were you Monday night at around 11:00 pm?" JC asked.  
  
Paco straightened up his jacket. "I was hanging with my boys."  
  
"You have witnesses?"  
  
"Yeah I have witnesses. Why don't you ask Officer Fredrick over here what he was doing on Monday night at around ll:00 pm," Paco sarcastically said.  
  
Martin roughly grabbed Paco by the jacket and pushed him towards the wall again. "Shut your mouth you idiot!" Martin sneered. Paco laughed at Martin's anger  
  
"Come on, Martin. Let's get going." JC grabbed Martin and headed towards the car.  
  
Once they were inside. Martin unloosened his tie.  
  
"What was all that about, man?" JC asked.  
  
"Nothing man. I just hate that kid."  
  
JC signed, knowing there was more to it than that.  
  
Scene 5:  
  
Even though JC was uncomfortable about the way Martin conducting himself, he still agreed to go to the Hot Room with him and Eddie. Martin came by JC's apartment in a brand new dark green Jaguar.  
  
"Damn, this is a nice car, Martin. How did you afford this on a cop's salary?" JC asked once he was inside.  
  
Martin laughed at JC's question. "I saved up for a while."  
  
They drove by Eddie's place to pick him up. Eddie was reluctant to go. He and Nina were no longer together but he still felt uncomfortable about going to a club where he knew there would be other women.  
  
Once they arrived at the Hot Room, it was crowded wall to wall with people. Eddie quickly lost Martin and JC in the crowd. He found an empty seat at the bar and ordered a drink.  
  
"Eddie? Is that you?" A woman's voice asked from behind.  
  
Eddie turned around to find a slightly tanned woman in a tiny red dress. He widened his eyes in surprise as he realized who it was. It was Gina. His old girlfriend.  
  
Eddie smiled. "Gina is that you?"  
  
Gina laughed and flipped her dark brown hair. "Yeah it's me are you surprise?"  
  
Eddie laughed and gave Gina a friendly hug. "Yeah I am surprise. It's been a while."  
  
Gina sat down beside Eddie. Eddie could not help but notice her long thick tan legs that were pressed tightly against the red material of her dress. The surface of her round breast peaked at the top of the dress. Gina had hardly changed. She still looked as sexy as she did when Eddie was dating her.  
  
"So, what have you been during with yourself?" Eddie asked taking a sip of his drink.  
  
Gina smiled warmly at Eddie. "Well after you and I broke up, I decided to travel to Europe for a while. I meet a man in Spain that owned a modeling agency and he hooked me up with a contract."  
  
"Sounds like you've been during good for yourself."  
  
"Yeah. So, what have you been during with yourself for the past couple of years? Any new women in your life?" Gina asked.  
  
Eddie looked down at his glass. "I've been during the same exact thing, Gina. I am still a Detective. And I did have a girlfriend but we broke up."  
  
"Oh, I'm sorry Eddie. But I never thought you were the long term relationship type."  
  
Eddie chuckled. "I guess not."  
  
Gina and Eddie got up a danced. Then they had a couple drinks. It felt good to finally be having the fun again.  
  
When a slow song came on, Eddie held Gina closely in his arms. He rubbed his hand down the warm skin on her back as she wrapped her arms around Eddie's neck. It was just like old times.  
  
Without warning, Gina's lips were on Eddie's. They warm, sweet and soft like rose petals. Eddie could not resist kissing Gina back. The thought of Nina crossed Eddie's mind but he didn't listen to his thoughts that told him to stop. The kiss intensified as Gina's tongue slowly made it's way into Eddie's mouth. Gina rubbed her hands through Eddie's curly hair, the same way Nina did when she and Eddie kissed.  
  
Gina broke up the kiss and Eddie signed, licking his lips.  
  
"Let's go back to your place," Gina whispered into Eddie's ear. He could feel her cool breath on his skin.  
  
Eddie thought about Gina's suggestion.  
  
"Okay, let's go."  
  
Scene 5:  
  
Nina paced her apartment. She tried telling Eddie about her pregnancy face to face, but that didn't work. Then she tried telling Eddie by writing a note, and that did not work.  
  
Nina plopped on the couch rubbing her stomach.  
  
"Baby how am I going to tell your daddy the truth?" She asked her unborn child.  
  
Nina made her way to the kitchen and poured a glass of water so she could take her prenatal pills. She picked up the telephone and began dialing Eddie's number.  
  
"No, I have to tell him in person," Nina decided hanging up the phone. Nina grabbed her jacket and purse.  
  
"It's now or never," Nina said to herself as she left the apartment.  
  
Scene 6:  
  
After finding, JC and Martin and telling them that he was going home, Gina drove Eddie to his apartment. On the way home, Eddie was a little nervous. He had not slept with another woman in a long time. Deep down inside he almost felt like he was cheating on Nina even thought they were not together anymore.  
  
Gina arrived at the apartment. They two began kissing as they made their way to his apartment.  
  
"Wait hold on a minute," Eddie said as he dug into his pockets for the keys. Gina placed kisses on the back of his neck as her hands made their way underneath his shirt. Once they were inside the apartment and the door was shut, Gina slowly took off Eddie's jacket.  
  
"I'm going to get some drinks," Eddie interrupted her as he went to the kitchen. He came back with two glasses of wine. He almost dropped the glasses in astonishment when he saw that Gina was now completely naked.  
  
She slowly walked towards Eddie and took the two glasses away from him.  
  
"Forget the drinks, Eddie," Gina whispered into Eddie's ear. She led Eddie to the bedroom.  
  
Scene 7:  
  
Nina had arrived at Eddie's apartment.  
  
"I sure hope he's here," she said to herself as she knocked on the door.  
  
  
  
  
  
To Be Continued…  
  
Read and review please. Thank you. 


	4. 4th Chapter

Hello Everybody!!!!! It is good to be back. I know it has been about 100 years since I updated, but I finally have a new chapter up. And yes, I do plan to finish this story, eventually. School, work, life, etc. has been a little hectic lately. But now that I have quit my job, I have a lot more free time on my hands. I hope to have a least one new chapter up every weekend. (Not making any promises) Well anyway, enjoy!!!! And Thanks for being patient.  
  
  
  
Scene 1: Eddie's apartment  
  
"You shouldn't be doing this, Eddie. You shouldn't be doing this," the little voice in his head kept saying over, and over again. Eddie's body, however, was saying something completely different. His body was telling him to sleep with Gina. Gina led Eddie to his bedroom and closed the door behind them. She wrapped her long arms around his neck and passionately began to kiss him. Eddie fingers slowly moved down her bare back.  
  
"Gina," Eddie broke off the kiss. "I don't know if we should do this. There's a woman that I love…"  
  
Gina seductively pouted her full lips. "I thought you broke up with her."  
  
Eddie tore his eyes away from Gina's nude body and signed. "I did break up with her. But I still love her, Gina. I feel like I'm cheating on the woman I love." Eddie guiltily looked at his feet. He didn't want to hurt Nina. But he did not want to hurt Gina either.  
  
Gina laughed. "Eddie, haven't you ever heard of one night stands? It is not like your girlfriend ever has to know. We can just have sex tonight and that will be the end of it. No strings attached."  
  
Eddie nervously ran his fingers through his hair, unsure if he should take Gina up on her offer. Gina slowly took Eddie's hand and placed it over her left breast.  
  
"Come on, Eddie. I know you want to make love to me."  
  
Eddie looked in Gina's inviting eyes. Gina slowly began to unzip Eddie's pants, and in one moment, they fell at his feet. A second later his boxers were also at his feet. Eddie could not resist Gina. As she fell backwards on the bed, Eddie climbed on top of her. He kissed her softly on her lips and made his way to her breast. Gina helped remove his shirt, and threw it on the floor.  
  
As Gina began to spread her legs and invite Eddie in between them, visions of Nina popped into his mind. It had been a while since Eddie had slept with or even thought about sleeping with another woman. Even though his relationship with Nina was over, he still loved her, and he knew he much rather be making love to Nina than Gina. But Nina was history.  
  
"Come on, Eddie," Gina urged Eddie.  
  
Eddie signed, and with only a moment's hesitation, he began to have sex with Gina.  
  
Scene 2: Nina goes to Eddie's apartment  
  
Nina nervously walked down the poorly lit hallway of Eddie's apartment. She thought about how Eddie might react. He could tell her that he did not want anything to do with the baby, but deep down inside Nina knew Eddie was not that type of a man. She knew he would take responsibility.  
  
"Here goes nothing," Nina mumbled to herself, as she knocked on the door.  
  
Scene 3: Eddie's apartment  
  
Eddie pushed inside of Gina one last time before his sweaty body collapsed on her from exhaustion.  
  
"Oh, baby that was so good," Gina purred from underneath him. Gina tried to kiss Eddie but he turned his head away. He could not even stand the sight of looking at her, knowing that he regretted sleeping with her. Eddie rolled to the other side of the bed, turning his back towards Gina. He almost felt like crying, knowing how weak he was to have sex with his old girlfriend. Now all he could think about was Nina. Sleeping with Gina made him realize just how much he loved Nina.  
  
Gina tried to steal a kiss, but Eddie gave her the cold shoulder.  
  
"What the hell is your problem?" Gina asked angrily.  
  
Eddie rolled his eyes and got out of the bed, looking for his pants. One thing he always hated about Gina was that she could be such a nagging bitch.  
  
"Gina, I think this was a bad idea."  
  
"Oh really," Gina replied, getting out of bed with the sheet wrapped around her. "That's funny. Judging by the way I had you moaning and groaning it was a pretty good idea."  
  
Eddie finished getting dress.  
  
"Gina, I feel bad enough about this as it is. I cheated on the woman I loved…"  
  
"You two broke up," Gina interrupted.  
  
"I cheated on her!" Eddie yelled, "It doesn't matter if we broke up. When you love someone, you love someone, and you don't go off and sleep with other people!" The guilt of betraying Nina stirred in his stomach until he could not take it anymore. Tears begin to fall from his eyes.  
  
There was a knock at the door. Eddie wiped the tears off his face and made his way to the door. It was probably JC, wondering what happened. Eddie opened the door to find Nina standing there.  
  
"Oh shit" Eddie thought. "Ni-Nina, what are you doing her?"  
  
Nina nervously smiled and looked at her feet. "I know I should have called first but I really needed to talk to you about something. Eddie, I'm-"  
  
"Eddie, who is it?" Gina called from the bedroom. Eddie turned his head to see Gina walk into the living room with nothing but a sheet wrapped around her. When he turned back around Nina was already half down the hallway.  
  
Eddie chased after her. "Wait Nina! I can explain!" He called after her.  
  
"Oh yeah, you can explain alright. I see it did not take you long to sleep with someone else," Nina said, with a trembling voice.  
  
Eddie grabbed Nina's arm and turned her around. It killed him inside to see tears of hurt fill her beautiful eyes.  
  
Eddie licked his lips. "Nina, I'm so sorry," he chocked. "I never meant to hurt you, baby…"  
  
"Well you sure did one hell of a job hurting me, Eddie!" Nina sobbed. Nina covered her face with her hands, and softly began to cry, "Stay the hell away from me, Eddie."  
  
Nina pulled her arm away from Eddie and walked away. "Oh by the way I'm pregnant, you son of a bitch!" She exclaimed before getting on the elevator.  
  
To Be Continued… 


	5. 5th chapter

***Before reading this chapter, I suggest you re- read the first two chapters again, because this chapter will refer back to the case of Maria Guzman.  
  
  
  
Eddie stood in the middle of the hallway in complete shock. He felt as if someone threw a bucket of ice-cold water on top of him.  
  
"Pregnant?" He whispered to himself. "Did Nina just say she was pregnant?"  
  
Before Eddie could get a response from Nina, she stepped into the elevator, and the doors closed in front of her.  
  
"Nina, wait!" Eddie screamed after her. He ran to the elevator and pound on the up button, but the elevator was taking to long to come back up. Eddie quickly ran down the stairway, skipping two to three steps at a time. When He finally made his way down the five flights of stairs, he saw Nina's car speed away.  
  
"Nina!" He yelled after her, but she was long gone.  
  
The cold air sent chills down Eddie's body, as he stood there for a while. Realizing that there was nothing he could do, Eddie made his way back to his apartment. Once he got there, he tried calling Nina. But of course, all he got was her answering machine.  
  
***Hi, this is Nina Moreno. I am not in right now, but if you leave your name and number at the sound of the beat, I will get right back to you. Adios!  
  
Eddie could not help but chuckle to himself. Nina's voice never sounded so sweet.  
  
"Nina, please pick up," He pleaded to her answering machine. "Baby, I'm so sorry. I never meant to her you, Nina. Please just pick up the phone." Eddie waited for a moment, but to his dismay, Nina did not answer. "Look, I know you're pissed off at me, and you have every right to be. So if you do not want to talk to me tonight, I understand. I love you, Nina. I don't care if you hate me forever for this, I still love you." Eddie hopefully waited another moment, but Nina still did not pick up. It was hopeless. Eddie signed, and hanged up his phone.  
  
Eddie slowly walked to through his apartment, reminiscing about what had just happened. He almost felt like crying. The most meaningful relationship he had ever had was probably over.  
  
"I really blew it with her this time," Eddie said to himself, as he picked up a picture of him and Nina. He smiled as he looked at the picture. It was taken not to long after they first decided to be more than just friends. Nina was sitting on Eddie's lap, and they both were laughing about something. Staring at the picture, he wondered if Nina would ever let him hold her like that again. Or laugh with him like that again. His brain pounding violently in his head, Eddie surrendered to bed.  
  
Scene 2: The fourth precinct  
  
With a cup of black coffee in his hand, Eddie pushed opened the door of the fourth precinct. He could already tell this was going to be a miserable day for him. He still had a migraine and he still had not talk to Nina yet. Taking a sip of his bitter coffee, he looked around the crowded police station for Nina, but there was no sign of her, and judging by the neatness of her desk, he could tell she had not came in yet.  
  
Eddie walked to his desk. "Why does life have to be so complicated?" he thought to himself.  
  
"Have you seen Nina this morning?" Eddie asked JC as soon as he got to his desk.  
  
"I think she called in sick today, man," JC said.  
  
Eddie signed and sat down on his chair  
  
"Damn Eduardo, you look terrible," JC commented, looking up from his computer. Eddie did not respond.  
  
"Long night?"  
  
Eddie finally picked up his head. "Yeah, long night,"  
  
JC snickered. "So, I see you took care of your business with Gina last night."  
  
Eddie rolled his eyes and ran his fingers through his hair. "Oh yeah, I took care of business with Gina," Eddie sourly said. "Right up until Nina came."  
  
JC's eyes widened in surprise. "Nina came by? Does she know-"  
  
"Yeah she knows," Eddie interrupted.  
  
JC continued typing his report. "Well I don't see why she would be upset about it. It's not like you guys are together any more."  
  
Eddie looked down and licked his lips. "I shouldn't have slept with Gina. Sleeping with Gina has probably ruined my life."  
  
JC snorted. "Oh please Ed, don't be so dramatic. Has Nina got you that whipped?"  
  
"Nina doesn't have me whipped, okay? It's just that I realized how much I loved Nina after I slept with Gina, if that makes sense."  
  
"No it doesn't," JC laughed.  
  
"Torres and Williams," Lieutenant Cooper called from her balcony.  
  
"Get up here, now."  
  
JC and Eddie made their way to Cooper's office. Once they were inside, Cooper closed her office door behind them.  
  
"Detectives, there has been another body found on 131st street. An 18 teen year old, prostitute with blunt drama to the head. She killed almost the same way as that Maria Guzman girl."  
  
"Do you think it was the same person who killed Maria?" Eddie asked, taking the file from Cooper.  
  
"It's possible. Look, you two are going to be working this case alone. I'm taking Nina off the case."  
  
"What?" JC said in surprised. "I mean, why?"  
  
Cooper hesitated, looking at Eddie. "She has a situation she has to deal with for the next couple of months."  
  
"She really is pregnant!" Eddie exclaimed to himself. He had been so worked up over Nina finding out about Gina, that he forgot that Nina had said she was pregnant.  
  
Cooper raised her eyebrows at Eddie, as if he knew about the situation she was referring to. "Anyway, I need you guys to get to the crime scene."  
  
"Alright, let's go," JC said, as he walked to the door.  
  
"Man just wait for me in the car. I will catch up." Eddie and JC gave each other a pound, as JC left.  
  
Once JC was gone, Eddie tried to figure out a way to ask Cooper about Nina. "Lieutenant, I know this is not professional, but did Nina say anything to you about what happened last night?"  
  
Cooper gave Eddie a disproving look, as she sat at her desk. "Yes she did, Eddie. She told me everything."  
  
Eddie swallowed the lump in his throat. "What exactly did she say?"  
  
"Well I don't remember word from word, Detective. I would suggest talking to her though. She seemed extremely upset."  
  
"Yeah, I will. Thanks, Lieutenant," Eddie said, before leaving her office. Talking to Nina was easier said than done.  
  
  
  
***Hey, guys I do not want to make this chapter to long, because then I think people will lose interest, so I will continue it at a later date. 


	6. chapter 5 continued

***This a continuation of Chapter 5  
  
  
  
Scene 1: The crime scene  
  
Eddie and JC arrived at the crime scene, which is crowded with bystanders and uniformed cops.  
  
"Excuse me," JC said politely, as he pushed through the people blocking his way.  
  
The two detectives lifted the yellow police tape above their heads as they climbed underneath.  
  
"I'm Detective Torres and this is my partner Detective Williams, from the fourth. What happened here?" Eddie asked, flashing his badge.  
  
"An 18 year old prostitute found this morning by some homeless man," one of the officers said, wiping the sweat from his brow.  
  
Placing a latex glove on his right hand, he bent down and lifted the white blanket that covered the young girl's corpse.  
  
"Damn," JC mumbled, gently touching the purple bruises that covered her pretty face.  
  
"Do we have a name for this girl?" Eddie asked  
  
"Stephanie Garcia," the cop answered.  
  
JC carefully turned Stephanie's head so he could get a better look of her neck. Her neck was broken.  
  
"So someone beats this girl, breaks her neck, and no one sees anything," JC said angrily.  
  
The cop chuckled, bitterly. "Yeah, just about,"  
  
"I'm going to ask those girls if they saw anything," Eddie said, pointing to three prostitutes standing across the street. He waited for a car to past and walk to the other side of the street.  
  
"Hey baby!" one of the prostitutes exclaimed. "Want to have some fun?"  
  
"Yeah, baby you can have all three of us, if you want," the other two girls whispered sexily.  
  
Eddie took off his sunglasses and showed the girls his badge. "Not interested, ladies. I'm Detective Torres and I need to ask you girls about Stephanie Garcia. She was killed this morning."  
  
The three girls started to tense up. "Look officer, please don't bust us. We all have kids at home and-"  
  
"Don't worry," Eddie reassured them. "I'm not going to arrest you for prostitution. I just need to ask you all about who killed Stephanie."  
  
One of the girls took a cigarette out of her purse and lit it. "Yeah, I know a couple of girls who would have liked to kill that bitch."  
  
Eddie pulled out a small notebook and began taking notes. "Why would you say that?"  
  
"She was always taking up our business," another girl answered, twirling her fuzzy blond hair. "From the first day she came on this street, all of our customers start going to her."  
  
"Did you see Stephanie with any suspicious men?"  
  
The third girl, a heavyset black woman with dreads, laughed. "Honey, all of the men we sleep with look suspicious!" The three women laughed.  
  
"Yeah but was there one man that you saw Stephanie with that caught your eye?"  
  
The three hookers paused.  
  
"Now that I think about it, I saw her get out of this real nice car one night. It was a Mercedes or something. Then I saw a guy get out of the car and slap her around a few times. They were arguing about something," the girl took a puff of her cigarette.  
  
"When was this?" Eddie asked.  
  
"A few nights ago."  
  
"You get a description of him?"  
  
"Tall black guy. That's all I saw."  
  
Eddie looked at his notes. He did not really have much.  
  
"Thanks for your help, ladies."  
  
Eddie crossed the street and headed towards JC.  
  
"Did you get anything?" JC asked as Eddie approached him.  
  
Eddie signed, going over his notes for a second time. "Not much. They did say that they saw a tall black guy hitting Stephanie around a few nights ago."  
  
"Well, lets report to the Lieutenant," JC said heading towards his car.  
  
Scene 2: The fourth precinct  
  
"Catch me up on what's going on in this case." Cooper said, sitting at her desk.  
  
Eddie licked his lips. "Unfortunately, we don't have anything. All we know is that the victim was an 18-year-old prostitute whose neck was snapped. A couple of prostitutes said they saw some black guy hit her a couple nights ago, but come on, that could have been anyone. I mean she was a prostitute."  
  
"Yeah," JC agreed. "It could have been an angered pimp, dissatisfied customer, a mad boyfriend-  
  
"The list goes on and on," Eddie finished up.  
  
Cooper frowned and ran her fingers through her close cut blonde hair.  
  
"What's the update on Adrienne Santiago?"  
  
JC signed. "She's still not talking."  
  
"Let's try talking to her again. Maybe she's ready to confess."  
  
Eddie and JC nodded and headed for the door. As Eddie was walking down the stairs, he saw Nina standing in front of her desk with a box of her things.  
  
"Nina!" Eddie called, quickly run down the stairs.  
  
Nina's head shot up at the sound of Eddie's voice. She gave him a look as cold as ice. As if she didn't see him, Nina picked up her box and headed for the exit.  
  
"Nina, wait a minute!" Eddie called, running after her.  
  
Nina ignored him and continued walking towards her car. Eddie was finally able to catch up to her and grabbed her shoulder.  
  
"Get away from me!" Nina yelled, turning to face Eddie. Eddie froze and stared at Nina. Eddie decided he never looked so beautiful. The sun bounced off her hair, making it look like an intense red. She wore a nicely fit tank top and blue jeans.  
  
"Nina," Eddie began, in a quivering voice. "We need to talk. You cannot keep running away from me like this. Especially when you're pregnant with my baby."  
  
The two just stood there in silence.  
  
"Listen Eddie," Nina said softly. "I'm not going to keep you away from your child. I just need some time alone."  
  
"Nina, just hear me out. I know you hate me right now. I should not have been with Gina. But she meant nothing to me. I love you," Eddie said, hopefully.  
  
Nina stared at Eddie, and her hard glaze began to soften. She shook her head no and got inside her car. "I-I can't talk to you about this right now, Eddie okay? If you want to talk more about this, then meet me at my place tonight."  
  
Before he could respond, Nina had already pulled off.  
  
Scene 3: A women's correctional facility  
  
JC and Eddie were waiting in the visitation hall for Adrienne.  
  
"So what's going on with you and Nina, man?"  
  
Eddie signed. "She's still pissed at me. But she agreed to talk to me tonight at Natalie's."  
  
JC patted his old friend on the back. "That's good. Maybe you two can work everything out."  
  
The gate that separated the prison from the visitation hall buzzed open, and two guards led Adrienne Santiago to the two detectives.  
  
The young girl face was smeared with tears. Her curly hair was looked like a rat's nest on top of her head.  
  
"Adrienne, you remember us?" JC asked, standing up.  
  
"Yes," the girl whispered. The girl sat across from JC and Eddie.  
  
"Adrienne, I know you are exactly enjoying yourself in there," Eddie said motioning toward the prison's gate. "Why don't you just tell us who you're covering for so you can go home?"  
  
Adrienne eyes filled with tears as she licked her thin lips. "You don't understand. He'll kill me if I say anything."  
  
"When can protect you," JC reassured the young girl.  
  
Adrienne shook her head. "No, there's nothing you can do. He will kill me, just like he killed Maria,"  
  
Eddie laid is hand on top of Adrienne's. "He can't kill you, if he's in jail."  
  
Adrienne looked at the two detectives and hesitated for a moment. "Okay, I'll confess."  
  
Eddie pulled out his notebook. "Tell us who did this,"  
  
"Officer Martin Fredrick."  
  
JC's eyes widened. "Officer Martin Fredrick? Are you sure?"  
  
Adrienne nodded. "He picked Maria and I off the street one day, and asked us if we wanted to make some money. We said yeah. That day he took both of us back to his place, and explained to us that the only way to make money is to sell coke. He gave us each a share, and told us if we cheated him, he would kill us. Maria's mom was a drug addict, and stole Maria's share. When Martin found out he killed her."  
  
Adrienne paused before she continued. "He told me that if I told anyone that he killed Maria, he would kill me too. I-I was so afraid, that I decided just to do my time in here." Adrienne began to cry.  
  
"I can't believe this," JC mumbled in surprise.  
  
"Do you know if Martin killed Stephanie Garcia, also?" Eddie questioned.  
  
Adrienne nodded his head. "Yes. He came to visit me the day after he killed her, and told me if I ever mentioned his name, then I would end up like her."  
  
  
  
Scene 3: Officer Martin Fredrick  
  
"Police! Open up!" Eddie yelled, banging on Martin's door.  
  
When there was no answer, Eddie got out the way, so JC could kick down the door. Eddie and JC stepped in the apartment to see Martin quickly trying to hide a bag of coke in his sofa.  
  
"JC, Eddie," Martin nervously greeted them. "What are you doing here?"  
  
"We're here to arrest you for the murder of Maria Guzman and Stephanie Garcia," JC said sternly.  
  
Martin looked at JC and laughed. "Are you serious, man? I didn't kill anyone!"  
  
"Yeah, well we have a confession and witnesses. Now you can either come with us peacefully or we will have to use force," Eddie said, pointing his gun at Martin.  
  
"What do we have here?" JC asked, lifting up Martin's sofa cushion. Underneath the cushion were three bags of coke.  
  
"That's not mine!" Martin quickly denied. "One of these drug dealers in the neighborhood must have set me up!"  
  
"Yeah, well tell that to your lawyer. In the mean time, you're under arrest," Eddie said, placing handcuffs on Martin.  
  
  
  
Scene 4: Cooper's office  
  
  
  
"So Officer Fredrick was responsible for this whole thing?" Cooper asked, looking at his file.  
  
"Yeah. I guess a cop's salary just wasn't enough for him," JC begin. "I never would have thought he was that type of man. I mean I grew up with him."  
  
"This job can change a lot of people for the worse," Eddie informed JC.  
  
"You two did a great job on this case. Have the rest of the day off," Cooper congratulated JC and Eddie.  
  
The two detectives shook Cooper's hand and left her office.  
  
"So what are you going to do with the rest of your day?" JC asked ask they walked.  
  
Eddie laughed. "Prepare a speech of what I'm going to say to Nina,"  
  
Scene 5:  
  
It was dark outside, as Nina pulled in front of the small supermarket. Eddie told her never to stop in this neighborhood alone, but she knew she was not going to be there for long. All she wanted was a couple bags of chips to satisfy her craving.  
  
"Damn, I'm hungry," Nina, mumbled to herself as she got out of her car. The street was gloomy and there were only a few people outside.  
  
"Hey, baby," a few drunken guys standing outside of the store, hollered at her. Nina ignored them and walked inside the store. Once she was inside, she greeted the cashier, and made her way to the junk food section. Grabbing a few bags of potato chips, she walked towards the register.  
  
"Everyone get down on the ground. This is a muthafuckin' stick up!" A young man yelled. He pointed his gun directly at Nina.  
  
To be continued… 


	7. 6th chapter

Hey guys!!!!! Geez it has been over a month since I have updated. Things have been really hectic in my life lately, especially mentally. Anyway, here is the update of my story. It might suck because the creative juices just are not flowing. Well here goes nothing…  
  
  
  
The liter of Coca-Cola fell to the floor with a thud, as Nina stood there, frozen in horror.  
  
"Get down, bitch," the teenager yelled, as he pointed the gun in Nina's face.  
  
It was almost as if some supernatural force had taken over her body, paralyzing her.  
  
"Oh my god, I'm going to die," she thought.  
  
Everything became a blur. The store was completely silent. There was no movement. Despite the fact that a gun was pointed at her, she did not thinking about dieing. Visions of her family popped in her mind. The thoughts of dieing before she resolved her problems with her father, not being able to spend time with Melissa, not telling her mother just how much she appreciated her, and not telling Eddie how much she love him, flooded her brain.  
  
The sound of the gun going off interrupted her thoughts.  
  
"Bitch, I said get down, before I shoot your ass!"  
  
Nina managed to run behind a potato chip rack. The cashier was already there, crying hysterically. Nina wrapped her arm around the teenaged girl and comforted her.  
  
"You have to be quiet. They will hear you," Nina whispered. The girl timidly nodded her head although she continued to sob. Nina could also hear the voices of several other people in the store, although she could not see them.  
  
"Yo Lucky is 5-0 coming?" another guy asked. Nina heard a pair of feet walking toward the door.  
  
"Naw, I don't see no cops,"  
  
1.1 "Okay there's at least two guys in here," Nina said to herself, trying to keep a mental note to herself as evidence.  
  
The young cashier, whose head was buried in Nina's shoulder, heard what Nina said, and looked up.  
  
"Are you a cop?" she asked.  
  
"Yes, and I need you to remain calm. Can you do that for me?" Nina asked, quietly.  
  
The frightened, young girl reluctantly shook her head.  
  
The boy with the gun stopped in front of Nina and the girl.  
  
"You," he said, motioning towards the girl with the gun, "Go open the cash register and but the money in that paper bag on the counter," he commanded.  
  
Tears immediately filled her eyes, as she clutched to Nina's arm.  
  
"It's okay, honey. Just do what he says," Nina reassured her. The girl slowly got off the ground, and walked to the cash register. The boy with the gun stayed behind, and smirked at Nina.  
  
"Are you scared of me?" He taunted.  
  
"Why would I be scared of you?"  
  
"Maybe its because I have a gun and I can shot you at any time."  
  
Nina tried to reason with the young kid. "If you kill anyone in here, you're looking at the rest of your life behind bars."  
  
"Not if I don't get caught," he said, reassuringly. A confidant smile slowly spreads across his face.  
  
"This is all the cash you have in that register, bitch. A hundred dollars?" the other guy yelled at the cashier.  
  
"Yes-yes, that's all that's in here," the girl stammered.  
  
"I know ya'll have some money in the safe. Go and open the damn safe!"  
  
Although she could not see what was going on, Nina could tell that the girl was scared out of her mind.  
  
"Only the manager has the keys to the safe. I-I do not have them!"  
  
"You lying bitch!" the guy yelled. Nina heard the man pull the trigger and fire the gun.  
  
  
  
Please Review. Thanks. 


	8. 7th chapter

Bang!! The sound of the gun being fired echoed through out the empty store. Shortly after the bang, Nina could hear a thud hitting the ground.  
  
"Lucky, man, what the hell did you just do?" Nina's first kidnapper yelled, running towards his comrade. Nina followed him.  
  
What she saw next almost mad her hurl.  
  
A shiny, red blood was smeared down the side of the wall. Nina swallowed the lump in her throat as she walked around the counter and tried to prepare herself for seeing the young girl's body. She was shot in the head. Her brown hair was matted to her skin. The white shirt she was wearing had now been dyed crimson red with her own blood.  
  
Nina turned around and faced the young girl's killer. There was so much anger in her eyes; it even made the two teenagers with the guns take a step back.  
  
"Why did you have to kill her?" she asked him quietly.  
  
The young boy's eyes nervously searched the store, looking for an answer. "I-I- don't know…I didn't mean to…. I-'' he stammered, as beads of sweet rolled down his forehead.  
  
Nina's calmness broke. "You don't know! Look at what you did to that girl! You killed her for no reason, you stupid son of a bitch!"  
  
Nina prepared to jump on the killer, but the other boy stopped her. "Alright, alright lady. Calm down. Or you'll be next," he threatened her.  
  
"What are we going to do, Star?" Lucky asked, almost to the point of crying. "I can't go to jail for murder."  
  
Star licked his lips and scratched his head as if he was coming up with a plan.  
  
"Go get the rest of the money and so we can get the hell out of here," Star ordered his friend. With that, Lucky ran back to the cash register.  
  
Star pointed the gun at Nina. "As much as I don't want to do this I have to kill you. Can't have any witnesses." Star pointed the gun at Nina.  
  
  
  
Scene Two: Nina's apartment  
  
  
  
Eddie almost felt as if he was going on his first date, as he approached Nina's apartment with a bouquet of flowers in one hand. His attire was nice, but not too over the top. He slicked back his jet-black curly hair for a more sophisticated look. He was freshly pressed pants, and a black blazer.  
  
Eddie breath deeply as he knocked on Nina's door. He swallowed the lump in his throat and prepared what he was going to say to Nina.  
  
"Listen, Nina, I love you and I'm sorry," No, that sounded to sappy. "Nina come back to me," That sounded too desperate.  
  
Eddie knocked on the door for the third time. Why wasn't she answering?  
  
"Nina are you there?" Eddie yelled, knocking on the door again. No answer. Where could she be?  
  
His cell phone ranged. "Torres," he answered.  
  
"We have a hostage situation at a drug store on 131st," Cooper said on the other line.  
  
Eddie signed in disappointment. "I'll be right there," he hanged up his phone and headed down the hallway. Nina would have to wait.  
  
  
  
Scene 3: At the store  
  
"Star, there's cops outside now!" Lucky yelled, looking out of the glass window.  
  
"Get away from the windows!" Star yelled. "They might have snipers and shit."  
  
"We should give up," Lucky suggested. "There's no way we can escape now."  
  
"Naw, fuck that!" Star retorted. "I'm not going to jail for nothing."  
  
He raised the gun towards Nina once again. Nina stood there and accepted her fate. Rubbing the stomach that carried her unborn child she thought to herself, "Well looks like we're going to heaven, baby."  
  
Star lowered the gun. "Shit, I'm no murderer," he softly said to himself. Nina breathed a sign of relief. Maybe she still had a chance to live.  
  
"Come over here," Star motioned towards Nina with the gun. Nina followed his instructions. He stood behind her and held the gun in her lower back.  
  
"Stay here, Lucky," he instructed his friend, as he pushed open the front door and walked outside with Nina in front of him.  
  
Nina shuddered as the cool air hit her sweaty body. Trying to adjust her eyes, she squinted from all the cop lights that were flashing in the night sky.  
  
"Let go of the hostage, and we might be able to cut a deal," Nina heard a familiar voice yell from the intercom. It was JC.  
  
"I'm not interested in cutting no deal. I want to get the hell out of here or I'll shot her!"  
  
  
  
Scene 3: Eddie arrives.  
  
Eddie gets out of his car and walked towards JC. "What the hell is going on?"  
  
"Hostage situation," JC explained. Some people around the area said they heard on shot already fired, so some of the hostages could be dead."  
  
Eddie bent down beside the car and strained his eyes from the glare of all the other lights to see the hostage from a distance.  
  
"Oh my God! That's Nina!" Eddie yelled. Without even thinking, Eddie began running towards her. JC managed to grab him before he could move any further.  
  
"Eddie, don't make in sudden movements. We don't want to put her life in any more danger."  
  
"But-"  
  
"But nothing. Look we got some snipers of the roof over there," JC said, pointing towards the roof of the building beside the store. "As soon as we get a clear shot we'll take him out."  
  
Eddie was so scared he was trembling. "What if it accidentally hits Nina, JC? What if it kills my baby?"  
  
JC did not answer.  
  
Scene 4: At the store  
  
Nina's eyes searched for Eddie and when she saw him, she was tempted to run towards him and jump in his arms. But she stood there with Star holding a gun in her lower back. Out of the corner of her left eye, she could see several snipers moving slyly around the roof of the adjacent building, preparing to take their next shot.  
  
Nina took a small step to the right. Without any warning, one of the snipers fired at Star. In a split second, he fell to the ground and Nina ran towards Eddie. No matter how fast she ran towards him, she felt like she would never get to him. She was too exhausted to run any faster. Luckily, she did not have to run anymore. Eddie meet her half way. He wrapped his long arms around Nina's body and held her as tight as he could. As she buried her face in his shoulder, Nina could tell by the tremble of his shoulders that he was crying.  
  
"Nina, if I would have lost you…" He trailed off.  
  
Nina said nothing. She never felt so happy to be in his arms. Especially after she was so close to being killed. 


	9. 8th chapter

"Whoa, whoa I got you," Eddie whispered in Nina's ear softly. He encircled his arms around Nina's waist to keeping her from collapsing.  
  
They both were completely exhausted. After spending a few hours in the police station giving statements, then spending even more time in hospital, they both felt like collapsing on the first bed they saw.  
  
Eddie wrapped one arm around Nina's waist to keep her steady and used his other arm to retrieve his house key from his pocket and open the front door. Once they were inside, he flicked on the living room light.  
  
Nina flinched from the harsh glare of the fluorescent light and looked around her ex-boyfriend's home. It almost looked like a completely different place. Maybe it looked so new to her because she had not been there in so long.  
  
"Sorry about the mess," Eddie laughed, picking up some files that lay sloppily on the sofa. He quickly walked to the bedroom and discarded the papers there. Closing the bedroom door behind him, he nervously looked at Nina.  
  
For what seemed like forever, the two stood there staring at each other. There was so much that they needed to talk about and needed to resolve. So much had happened.  
  
"Listen, Nina—" Eddie began.  
  
Nina held up her hand to cut him off.  
  
"Eddie not tonight. Not tonight, okay?"  
  
Eddie nodded.  
  
Silence.  
  
Eddie stuffed his hands in his pocket and looked at his feet.  
  
"I think the best thing for us to do is try to get some sleep. You can take the bed and I'll take the couch," Eddie suggested.  
  
Nina shook her head no. "No, Eddie this is your apartment. You can take the bed, and I'll sleep on the couch."  
  
"Nina, just take the bed. Please?"  
  
Nina realized there was no sense in arguing with him about where they would sleep.  
  
"Fine. I'll take the bed," Nina said reluctantly.  
  
For the next half hour, Nina and Eddie did not talk to each other. While Eddie got extra pillows and blankets for himself, Nina was in the shower. As the steam from the hot water filled the small bathroom, Nina gently rubbed her aching muscles with her washcloth. She was so sore. Everything from her head to her toes was throbbing.  
  
She could not help but smile as a wave of nostalgia wash across her. She had great memories of what her and Eddie used to do in this shower together.  
  
"Those were the days," Nina murmured to herself, as she turned off the shower. With her naked body dripping with water, she grabbed a towel and wrapped it around her. She then slowly opened the door to see if Eddie was around. Low sounds of the television from the living room gave Nina the indication that Eddie had already settled down on the couch. She tip toed to the bedroom and closed the door behind her. Since she had nothing to sleep in, Nina opened Eddie's closet door and put on one of his large flannel shirt. She then climbed into Eddie's bed and pulled the covers over her. Sleeping in the same bed that she and Eddie once shared and the same bed that he cheated on her in would definitely be difficult.  
  
Scene 2  
  
Eddie lazily slouched on his leather couch and tried to focus on the episode of LA Law that he was watching. But it was hard to concentrate, especially with Nina in his bedroom. Eddie wanted more than anything to slide in bed with Nina and just hold her body next to his. He knew that would never happen.  
  
Eddie rubbed his eyes and flicked off the television. Not wanting to awake Nina, Eddie took off his shirt and pants and decided to sleep in his boxers for tonight. Maybe some sleep would take his mind off Nina.  
  
Scene 3  
  
Nina heard the sound of the gun go off. She heard the young girl's body hit the floor. As she walked around the counter, Nina saw the blood splattered on the wall of the store. The girl's face was covered with her blood. Her curly hair matted to the back of her head where they bullet had entered.  
  
She was so young. Sixteen maybe seventeen. And she was dead. Nina could not save her. Tears filled Nina's eyes.  
  
"No!" she screamed.  
  
"No!" Nina yelled, waking up from her dream.  
  
"No, No, No! Why did you have to kill her?" Nina yelled to herself. She sobbed uncontrollably.  
  
In a matter of seconds, the bedroom door opened, and Eddie appeared wearing nothing but his boxers. Sitting down beside her on the bed, Eddie gently shook Nina.  
  
"Nina, are you okay?" he asked, concern filling his voice.  
  
Nina buried her head in his hard bare chest. "Oh Eddie I can't stop thinking about that girl."  
  
"Shh, shh," Eddie whispered. He soothed Nina by gently rubbing her back. "There was nothing you could have done to save her," he reassured her. His voice was barely a whisper. Somehow, the combination of his silky voice and his strong arms wrapped around her made Nina calm down.  
  
Without any warning, Nina's tear streaked face looked up at Eddie and softly kissed his lips. As if a bee had just stunned him, Eddie jumped back in surprise.  
  
"Nina…maybe we shouldn't…"  
  
Nina ran her fingers through her hair. "Eddie, please…I just need you tonight. I need you…"  
  
Eddie could not help but notice the pain mixed with sadness in her eyes. Although he was not sure it was a good idea for them to have sex without resolving their problems, he could not deny her. He slowly bent his head down and returned Nina's kiss. The moment their lips touched they loss all control. Eddie gently pushed Nina back onto the bed and climbed on top of her. Managing to break his lips away from Nina, he slowly unbuttoned her flannel shirt, kissing the revealed skin on her chest. Soon her shirt was completely unbuttoned, and Eddie pulled it off her shoulders.  
  
He almost forgot what a beautiful body she had, as he looked at her bare, full breast. He lowered his face to one of breast and began gently suck on it.  
  
Eddie could her Nina softly moan from pleasure. He secretly smiled to himself. It really had been a very long time.  
  
Eddie lowered his mouth to Nina's navel and licked the tendered skin there. Filling her gently pull on his hair turned him on even more. He carefully pulled off her panties and lowered them on the floor.  
  
Nina spread her legs to fit Eddie between them. "Oh God," Nina moaned once more as she felt Eddie kiss the inside of each thigh. She felt Eddie's wet tongue lick the inside of her womanhood. Feeling Nina's thighs buck, Eddie began to lick harder. A loud yell of pleasure left Nina's lips.  
  
Eddie then returned to Nina's face and kissed her once more. Without warning, Nina felt him enter her. He started off gently but started going faster and harder. The bed squeaked and Eddie moaned. They both held on to each other's sweaty bodies.  
  
Nina did not know what their futures would be together. They could get back together for the sake of their child or not. Right now, all she wanted was to make love to Eddie. 


	10. 9th chapter

"Whoa, whoa I got you," Eddie whispered in Nina's ear softly. He encircled his arms around Nina's waist to keeping her from collapsing.  
  
They both were completely exhausted. After spending a few hours in the police station giving statements, then spending even more time in hospital, they both felt like collapsing on the first bed they saw.  
  
Eddie wrapped one arm around Nina's waist to keep her steady and used his other arm to retrieve his house key from his pocket and open the front door. Once they were inside, he flicked on the living room light.  
  
Nina flinched from the harsh glare of the fluorescent light and looked around her ex-boyfriend's home. It almost looked like a completely different place. Maybe it looked so new to her because she had not been there in so long.  
  
"Sorry about the mess," Eddie laughed, picking up some files that lay sloppily on the sofa. He quickly walked to the bedroom and discarded the papers there. Closing the bedroom door behind him, he nervously looked at Nina.  
  
For what seemed like forever, the two stood there staring at each other. There was so much that they needed to talk about and needed to resolve. So much had happened.  
  
"Listen, Nina—" Eddie began.  
  
Nina held up her hand to cut him off.  
  
"Eddie not tonight. Not tonight, okay?"  
  
Eddie nodded.  
  
Silence.  
  
Eddie stuffed his hands in his pocket and looked at his feet.  
  
"I think the best thing for us to do is try to get some sleep. You can take the bed and I'll take the couch," Eddie suggested.  
  
Nina shook her head no. "No, Eddie this is your apartment. You can take the bed, and I'll sleep on the couch."  
  
"Nina, just take the bed. Please?"  
  
Nina realized there was no sense in arguing with him about where they would sleep.  
  
"Fine. I'll take the bed," Nina said reluctantly.  
  
For the next half hour, Nina and Eddie did not talk to each other. While Eddie got extra pillows and blankets for himself, Nina was in the shower. As the steam from the hot water filled the small bathroom, Nina gently rubbed her aching muscles with her washcloth. She was so sore. Everything from her head to her toes was throbbing.  
  
She could not help but smile as a wave of nostalgia wash across her. She had great memories of what her and Eddie used to do in this shower together.  
  
"Those were the days," Nina murmured to herself, as she turned off the shower. With her naked body dripping with water, she grabbed a towel and wrapped it around her. She then slowly opened the door to see if Eddie was around. Low sounds of the television from the living room gave Nina the indication that Eddie had already settled down on the couch. She tip toed to the bedroom and closed the door behind her. Since she had nothing to sleep in, Nina opened Eddie's closet door and put on one of his large flannel shirt. She then climbed into Eddie's bed and pulled the covers over her. Sleeping in the same bed that she and Eddie once shared and the same bed that he cheated on her in would definitely be difficult.  
  
Scene 2  
  
Eddie lazily slouched on his leather couch and tried to focus on the episode of LA Law that he was watching. But it was hard to concentrate, especially with Nina in his bedroom. Eddie wanted more than anything to slide in bed with Nina and just hold her body next to his. He knew that would never happen.  
  
Eddie rubbed his eyes and flicked off the television. Not wanting to awake Nina, Eddie took off his shirt and pants and decided to sleep in his boxers for tonight. Maybe some sleep would take his mind off Nina.  
  
Scene 3  
  
Nina heard the sound of the gun go off. She heard the young girl's body hit the floor. As she walked around the counter, Nina saw the blood splattered on the wall of the store. The girl's face was covered with her blood. Her curly hair matted to the back of her head where they bullet had entered.  
  
She was so young. Sixteen maybe seventeen. And she was dead. Nina could not save her. Tears filled Nina's eyes.  
  
"No!" she screamed.  
  
"No!" Nina yelled, waking up from her dream.  
  
"No, No, No! Why did you have to kill her?" Nina yelled to herself. She sobbed uncontrollably.  
  
In a matter of seconds, the bedroom door opened, and Eddie appeared wearing nothing but his boxers. Sitting down beside her on the bed, Eddie gently shook Nina.  
  
"Nina, are you okay?" he asked, concern filling his voice.  
  
Nina buried her head in his hard bare chest. "Oh Eddie I can't stop thinking about that girl."  
  
"Shh, shh," Eddie whispered. He soothed Nina by gently rubbing her back. "There was nothing you could have done to save her," he reassured her. His voice was barely a whisper. Somehow, the combination of his silky voice and his strong arms wrapped around her made Nina calm down.  
  
Without any warning, Nina's tear streaked face looked up at Eddie and softly kissed his lips. As if a bee had just stunned him, Eddie jumped back in surprise.  
  
"Nina…maybe we shouldn't…"  
  
Nina ran her fingers through her hair. "Eddie, please…I just need you tonight. I need you…"  
  
Eddie could not help but notice the pain mixed with sadness in her eyes. Although he was not sure it was a good idea for them to have sex without resolving their problems, he could not deny her. He slowly bent his head down and returned Nina's kiss. The moment their lips touched they loss all control. Eddie gently pushed Nina back onto the bed and climbed on top of her. Managing to break his lips away from Nina, he slowly unbuttoned her flannel shirt, kissing the revealed skin on her chest. Soon her shirt was completely unbuttoned, and Eddie pulled it off her shoulders.  
  
He almost forgot what a beautiful body she had, as he looked at her bare, full breast. He lowered his face to one of breast and began gently suck on it.  
  
Eddie could her Nina softly moan from pleasure. He secretly smiled to himself. It really had been a very long time.  
  
Eddie lowered his mouth to Nina's navel and licked the tendered skin there. Filling her gently pull on his hair turned him on even more. He carefully pulled off her panties and lowered them on the floor.  
  
Nina spread her legs to fit Eddie between them. "Oh God," Nina moaned once more as she felt Eddie kiss the inside of each thigh. She felt Eddie's wet tongue lick the inside of her womanhood. Feeling Nina's thighs buck, Eddie began to lick harder. A loud yell of pleasure left Nina's lips.  
  
Eddie then returned to Nina's face and kissed her once more. Without warning, Nina felt him enter her. He started off gently but started going faster and harder. The bed squeaked and Eddie moaned. They both held on to each other's sweaty bodies.  
  
Nina did not know what their futures would be together. They could get back together for the sake of their child or not. Right now, all she wanted was to make love to Eddie. 


End file.
